Couperin, F: Pièces de clavecin III: Ordre 14ème in D major: Le rossignol-en-amour

Grave, agile, majestic, picturesque, the keyboard output of François Couperin, with its array of indispensable ornaments and piquant details, enables us to follow all the impulses of the soul of 'the most poetic of our harpsichord composers', as Debussy called him. Performed here on the piano, which its own special colour, these harpsichord pieces, in their various moods, retain al their inimitable charm.

"Pamela Thorby's sensual recorder playing, complete with improvised flourishes and infinitely flexible dynamic shadings, is out of the top drawer." Music Week

"A wonderful artist at her very best: relaxed, stylish, unpredictable and distinctive of tone." Independent on Sunday

Following her successful collaborations with Richard Egarr and Andrew Lawrence-King world-famous recorder player Pamela Thorby teams up with renowned lutenist Elizabeth Kenny for her fourth solo album on Linn, ‘The Nightingale and the Butterfly’, a sparkling exploration of French Baroque music.

‘The Nightingale and the Butterfly’ presents a fine example of Pamela Thorby’s award-winning trademark sound: soaring and graceful melodies played impeccably.

Elizabeth Kenny weaves the lute melodies seamlessly amongst Pamela’s recorders – the two players complementing each other effortlessly.

Thorby and Kenny, both specialists in Baroque repertoire, give a unique interpretation of these appealing works whilst uncovering the beauty of some lesser-known gems.

Pamela Thorby has established herself as one of the world’s leading recorder players. She is most regularly heard on Karl Jenkins’ fabulous Adiemus recordings making her possibly one of the most listened to recorder players in the world.

Pamela was a founding member of the multi award-winning Palladian Ensemble achieving international success with ten critically acclaimed albums.

Pamela has appeared many times as a soloist at major UK festivals and venues including Wigmore Hall and the Royal Albert Hall.

Elizabeth Kenny, one of the UK’s foremost lute players, performs regularly with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Gabrieli Consort and Les Art Florissants.

After a disc dedicated to brunettes and contredanses of the 18th century (ALPHA115), the Musiciens de Saint-Julien [including Alexis Kossenko] allow us to discover in this new record the skilful and sophisticated use of the flute and the musette by the composers of the years 1715-1740 in various French Suites and Italianate Sonatas. In unusual repertoire the ensemble of François Lazarevitch asserts itself as one of the most inventive on the current baroque scene.

With this third volume Angela Hewitt concludes her personal survey of Couperin’s keyboard music and proves that, in the hands of someone as steeped in Baroque keyboard style as herself, music which was previously thought the exclusive domain of the harpsichordist can be successfully transferred to the modern piano.

Though much of Couperin’s harpsichord music was written for a solo instrument, he composed a small number of pieces for two harpsichords, somewhat in the manner of a trio sonata. Lucy Carolan and John Kitchen pair their considerable talents on two of the world’s most exquisite original French instruments, the 1769 Pascal Taskin and the 1764/83 Goermans/Taskin double-manual instruments in the Russell Collection of Early Keyboards. This unique and unforgettable recital is a must-have for enthusiasts and serious Baroque connoisseurs alike.